Cognitive style and its implications for navigation strategies

In this paper, we investigate the effect of cognitive styles (field dependence) for navigation strategies. The application teaches the use of the database features in Microsoft EXCELä. Two versions of the interface were developed offering free vs constrained hypermedia access to the information. A statistical analysis of the trace revealed important differences of exploration behaviors based on user characteristics. The paper provides extensive studies review and empirical validation for the need to consider cognitive styles to design more adapted user interface. It also highlights the importance of combining a log of user's actions and satisfaction measures, to better understand the user reaction to hypermedia. KeywordsÊ: Field dependence, cognitive styles, navigation strategies, information processing, computer-based